Overheard at the New York City Wine & Food Festival

We went, we ate, we asked questions. Herein, some of our favorite moments from some of our favorite events of the past week — Tom Colicchio's love of steak, Bobby Flay's boozy marathon diet, and much more

"Good ingredients, man. The sum of each ingredient makes the burger. Every ingredient has got to be well thought-out. And proportion. The bun can't be too big, the burger can't be too big, can't be too much stuff." —Michael Schwartz, Michael's Genuine Food & Drink

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Eva Meszaros

"It's the sophisticated simplicity of it. I just love the meat, the grind, the taste of it — I love cooking it." —Andrew Fischel, Rub BBQ

"I remember the first time I went to California, I didn't know anything about them. My aunt's from there, she took me there, and I sat down and had the burger, and I was like, I don't know what this is, but this is probably one of the best burgers I've had in my life. That was back in '95." —Mark Rosati, Shake Shack, on eating at In & Out Burger

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Paul Schrodt

Bacon & The Blues

"Bacon and Cherry Coke. I'm originally from Atlanta, little do most people know, and Atlanta was a Coca-Cola town. When we were kids we used to go into the store and get sodas at the fountain, with the syrup and everything. You braise the meat for four hours and then throw in a splash of Cherry Coke. Why's it so good? It's all about childhood memories." —Todd English on his favorite bacon dish to make at home

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Mark Mikin

Panel Discussion: How Many Restaurants Are Too Many For One Chef?

"Daniel satisfied my career, my reaching to the highest. But what satisfies my soul often is more a place like DBGB, or DB Bistro, or Bar Boulud. For me, I don't think I would be happy if I only had one restaurant." —Daniel Boulud

"As a small-business owner, you don't have the luxury of picking and choosing what job you're going to have on what day. My favorite job, and the best job I've ever had has always been in the kitchen. That being said, I like to share." —Jimmy Bradley, The Red Cat and The Harrison

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Mark Mikin

Prohibition Cocktails

"The thing that we're missing from the Prohibition era is the size: the cocktails that we drink are still too big. If we start with modestly sized cocktails, you can frankly drink a lot more." —Allen Katz, Southern Wine & Spirits of New York

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The Oyster Bash

"My ten-year-old daughter had oysters for the first time three months ago. She put it in her mouth, shook her head, and spit it out." —Dan Silverman, The Standard Grill

"The best season to eat oysters is the fall, because they're still taking advantage of some productive algae in the water, and the salt content is still pretty high right now because we didn't have a lot of fresh water this summer." —Adam James, Hama Hama Oyster Company

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Tacos & Tequila

"I love the sensibility of what Mexican cooking is about. It appeals to all our senses. You take one bite of this taco: the sweetness of the pomegranate, the tart taste of the pumpkin, the sweetness of the mole, the silkiness of the duck, and then you have the beautiful foie gras... you really need a cigarette after it." —Todd English

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"Tripe is my favorite protein to put in a taco. But I'm not putting it in these. That's for my dinner later." —Akhtar Nawab, La Esquina

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Mark Mikin

DeBragga at Dusk

"Incisors. We have them right here, we're made to tear meat. We're meant to eat meat. I love vegetables as much as I love meat, but there's something about — seriously — sinking your teeth into a steak, there's just nothing like it. I was actually vegetarian for a year, and that's what I missed. People were telling me bacon? No, I missed the steak." —Tom Colicchio, Craft

"Animals are much easier, and there's a reason for that. Because animals only want love, if you give them love, that's enough. Partners always want something more." —George Faison, DeBragga and Spitler

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Alex Clothier

Ultimate Sandwich Showdown

"It was tomato and cream cheese, because that's what Harriet the Spy ate." —Sara Jenkins, Porchetta, on what she packed for lunch as a kid

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Alex Clothier

"This sandwich is two peanut butter cookies, dusted with a little bit of sea salt and schmeared with crunchy peanut butter, marshmallow fluff, and roasted bananas. My mom never let me do fluffernutter when I was a kid." —Jenn Giblin, Blue Smoke Bake Shop

"My favorite sandwich depends on the season. Fall is the time for really interesting braises — short rib, brisket, bone marrow. And it's all about texture contrast for sandwiches. Something crispy, really good bread, something nice and soft on the inside, and you can't miss." —Tyler Florence

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Alex Clothier

"We have a Canal Street theme. We have bootleg DVDs and purses in the back." —Eddie Huang, BaoHaus, wearing an "OPP" hat

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Anna Peele

Bobby Flay Culinary Demonstration

"I'm running the marathon in four weeks and people ask me what my marathon diet is: Jack Daniel's." —Bobby Flay

"I don't know how somebody so purdy had a son that looks like that." —Paula Deen, to Bobby Flay's mother

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Eva Meszaros

Guy Fieri's Triple Ten Closing Party

"The best drink to get drunk on while making pasta: red wine." —Guy Fieri

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